Madoff was arrested by FBI on December 11, 2008 on charges of securities fraud. He had admitted that his business was “a giant Ponzi scheme,” a scam that pays early investors returns from the investments of later investors.
Irving Picard, a New York lawyer, is the trustee overseeing the liquidation of Madoff’s brokerage. It is his job to identify any remaining assets that could be returned to investors who believe they were defrauded by the accused swindler.
Picard’s request that Lovells be brought on to help in the liquidation must be approved by U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Burton Lifland in Manhattan. Lovells will be brought on to sort through legal issues in Europe which are related to the brokerage.
A spokesman for Lovells declined to comment any further than what was issued in the court filing.